Every social media platform seems to have its moment in the sun, and currently it is Snapchat's turn. While it might not seem instinctive, Snapchat has become the latest rising star of marketing. On any given day, Snapchat reaches 41% of all 18 to 34 year-olds in the United States and over 100 million people around the globe snap on a daily basis.

Snapchat launched a mere four years ago, but it has quickly risen to the top, and it is easy to see why. The app lets a person (or brand) send photos as well as videos to their friends and followers. These 'snaps' last only 10 seconds before they disappear, and can be edited or filtered with a variety of fun effects.

Building on the instant-gratification culture, this social media platform has massive appeal because of its assumed authenticity. The clicks are taken by everyday people on their cell phones, and thus seem more real than a staged, photo-shopped session.

This all sounds great, but how can one use this massively popular tool to market their brand?

Five ways to use Snapchat for your brand

1. Live events or promotions

Your aim should be to provide access to content which is considered exclusive or direct access. If you are doing an event or promotion, snap it to your followers to drum up excitement and interest. A VIP event might take days or weeks for content to be released on media, but with Snapchat, users can see the event almost instantly.

2. Behind the curtain

Think of it as a tour of your brand. You can show the creation of your product from initial brainstorming to production, or show off the people behind the product. Capture special moments like a corporate anniversary, crazy-hat day at work, and more. This helps customers feel more connected with the brand on a personal level, by giving them a glimpse of something they wouldn't have normally seen.

3. Offer coupons and promo codes

Reward users by offering them a coupon code or a free item in exchange for sending snaps of themselves with your product. Users will be highly motivated for getting something in return for as simple as clicking a snap, and this will then translate into more followers and real sales. The coupon codes are also great for tracking metrics.

4. Partner up with an influencer

Get double the amount of followers by buddying up with an already established celebrity or an influencer. You can ask the influencer to take over the account for a day, or to promote your brand through their own account.

5. Build hype

Got a new line coming up? Create a series of pictures and videos ending with cliffhangers to build anticipation and make users look forward to the next reveal. Keep in mind though the reveal should be worth the time and effort. Even after a launch, exciting developments can be captured, or if it is something which has to be pre-ordered, then you can show the initial batches of the product being shipped off to lucky customers.

While these are only a few tactics, remember to experiment to see how best Snapchat can be used as part of your marketing mix. The benefit of using this platform is that while brands are fighting it out over visibility on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc., Snapchat is still relatively new and hence ripe for picking.

As former Hootsuite marketer Evan LePage wrote, “Succeeding on a new social network is often about experimenting, seeing what resonates and what misses the mark.”

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